Iowa

Iowa is ground zero for retaliatory agricultural tariffs. The state's three biggest exports — corn, soybeans, and pork — are all explicitly targeted by China, Mexico, and the EU in tit-for-tat retaliation. China's 25% soybean tariff alone cost Iowa farmers an estimated $624 million annually as Chinese buyers shifted to Brazilian suppliers, and those trade patterns have proven sticky even when tariffs fluctuate. Iowa's hog industry, the nation's largest, produces 48 million hogs annually; pork exports to China and Mexico — the two largest foreign markets — face tariffs of 25-62%. John Deere's global headquarters sits in nearby Moline (IL) but its manufacturing and supply chain are deeply Iowa-rooted, and retaliatory tariffs on agricultural equipment hurt Iowa's largest employer category. Ethanol, Iowa's value-added corn product, faces trade barriers in China and Brazil that reduce demand for 40% of Iowa's corn crop. The state's wind energy industry — Iowa generates 60% of its electricity from wind — depends on imported turbine components subject to tariffs. Even Iowa's growing data center sector (Meta, Microsoft, Google) faces higher costs for imported servers and networking equipment.